The funeral began in the public cemetery on the outskirts of town. The cemetery was surrounded by a shabby fence. Round stones with names carved on them dotted the yard, serving as grave markers.

The village headman appealed to gods Louen had never heard of, so that the deceased might rest in peace. After he had done, his rites were followed by the ones of Morr. Without any in the Bretonnian army to be fully dedicated to Morr, three women had to suffice.

They wore long, pale blue dresses, their hair blonde like the sun and their skin as pale as the snow.

«We grieve for those who are inspired. Their genius stolen, or acquired. Who watch with hope, and risk their dreams. To see them born as dark regimes. » they chanted several times, as all around them the Bretonnian knelt down in prayers for the death.

There weren't enough hands to bury all the corpses at once, so they were starting with what they could. Louen thought it seemed hasty to bury people that very day, without proper rites, but there were no religions he was familiar with here, so all he could do was praying to the Lady that Necromancers had not been stranded here as well.

Among the villagers present were the sisters his knights had saved, Enri and Nemu Emmott. Their parents must have been getting buried that day.

Eventually, the villagers finished their prayers. But what surprised them was the fact that the Bretonnians kept on praying. They considered themselves devoted to their gods, yet not even they prayed as fervently as the Bretonnians. The headman assumed these people were extremely religious.

Not that he blamed them. According to what Louen told him, his world was one of never-ending war. He bet that death must had been as regular as the rising of the sun. Faith in gods probably helped in such harsh times.

So far, Carne village never had to deal with much. Sure, life was hard, but monster attacks were rare. In the constant Annual Wars, the village was never torched by the Baharuthians. These people didn't know the pain of death, unless talking about the passing of an elderly or the sick ones.

The villagers decided to allow the Bretonnians to pray. More protection in their afterlives, they though. Right as some dirt was being thrown onto a fresh gave, the two sisters collapsed in tears.

By the time Louen left the headman's house after learning about the world they ended up in, the sun had been sitting low in the sky.

After a while, the funerals had finished. But still, the Bretonnians prayed. Some prayed for the dead, of course. Others prayed for themselves. Louen had informed them about the situation that had developed, and the very likelihood that they were stranded in another world. These were brave knights of Bretonnia, they wouldn't just fall to despair.

But it was still hard to take in. All their loved ones, all their fortunes had been taken away from them. Not to mention that, now that they were in alien territory, there was the issue of Bretonnia's position in this new world.

Louen knew that making enemies with the Re-Estize kingdom was suicide. Such a large country could had supported large number of troops, enough to swarm the Bretonnians. Plus, they held all the advantages: they were fighting in their homeland, knew the landscape, had the loyalty of the population. In short, unless he wanted to send his knights to their deaths, he had to avoid making enemies within the kingdom.

Perhaps he could offer himself as an ally? News of the rescue of the village would spread within the Re-Estize kingdom, reaching the ears of the king.

But now, it didn't matter. These were all thoughts he could give after making contacts to El-Rantel.

As the Bretonnians were still deep in praying, the headman arrived nervously. Louen turned his head at the sight of the villager.

«Is something wrong, Mr. Headman? »

«Oh, Lord Louen! We have word that there are mounted knights heading toward the village. »

«I see. »

The headman looked nervously at Louen.

He held up a hand to calm him. «Leave this to me and my knights. Gather all the villagers in your house at once, then meet me in the square. If the Baharuth empire seeks to further desecrate your home, they'll meet a painful demise. »

A bell rang, and while the villagers gathered, Louen got on his mighty hippogriff steed, joined by the knights, ready for combat.

A group of knights was the first to arrive, leaded by a Pegasus flying through the air. He recognized the Pegasus rider; he was none other than Jasperre le Beau, the Dragonslayer. He was followed by Guillaume, Henri, Repanse and Jerrod, who were joined by an elderly knight on the horse back of Repanse's steed.

« My lord! Other Bretonnian knights are riding towards the village! » Agravain said, as other knights came from the East and West. Once they were in full view, he recognized all of them. Jules, DuClaw, Tristan le Troubadour, Tancred, Leofric, Theodoric, Odo, Tristan, Suliman and Roland.

« Your highness! What happened here? » Repanse asked concerned, as she bowed, alongside the other knights.

« An attack. Vile knights attacked this village, before some of my warriors saved the inhabitants from certain doom. » Louen explained.

The other knights were shocked by the king's explanation. Knights, attacking innocent villagers?

« How could knights do something so despicable? » Henri asked disgusted.

« It is a long story. For starters, I understand it might be hard to believe, but we're no longer in the Old World. As a matter of fact, it seems we're no longer in Mallus at all. » Louen explained, gaining surprised looks from all of the newcomers.

With that, he begun to explain everything, from the knights rescue operation to his meeting with the headman.

To say that the Bretonnian newcomers were shocked, it was an understatement. They had faced many threats before, many countless horrors that would leave lesser men scarred. This? This somehow shocked them more than anything they faced.

« It would certainly explain why the land seemed so alien. While similar to the forests of the Old World, I've never heard of a place called the Tove Woodlands. » Leofric commented.

« Who could had done this? To strand us in an alien world! It's unforgivable! » Guillaume exclaimed angrily.

« I comprehend your anger, but we must not give in to rage in these harsh times. We must keep a cool head if we're to survive this alien land. » Louen calmed the raging knight.

Suddenly, the sound of more horse galloping could be heard, and the Bretonnians took a stance. If it was knights of the Baharuth empire, they would not leave this village alive.

It wasn't long before a group of cavalrymen came into view down the main road. They rode in formation and proceeded quietly into the village.

Louen looked at them relieved. These weren't Baharuthian knights. Still, he was confused. «Their gear doesn't match—they've all got custom setups... Does that mean they're not part of a regular army? »

Watching the cavalrymen, Louen felt something was off about their equipment.

The knights who had come before with the empire's crest emblazoned on their chests all had matching heavy armor. But these cavalrymen, they were wearing armor, but everyone had arranged their equipment to their own liking. Some wore just leather armor for some parts, while others had taken off iron plates and wore exposed chain mail. Some wore helmets, some didn't. The one thing they had in common in that department was that their faces were visible. They also all wore the same make of sword, but their secondary weapons were all different types—bows, one-handed spears, maces, etc.

Eventually the party rode right into the square, about twenty men. While keeping an eye on the Bretonnians, they formed a magnificent row before Louen and the village headman. One of them, still on his horse, came forward. He appeared to be their leader and was more robust than the others. He practically overlooked the headman, stopped his eyes on the Bretonnians, and then looked at Beaquis. His eyes stayed there for a long time, as if he were caught. But when he saw that the mighty beast was just standing at attention without moving a muscle, he turned his sharp, perceptive gaze on Louen.

This man had the air of one who made violence his occupation, but Louen took his gaze and just stood there. If these were soldiers of the Re-Estize kingdom, they must had assumed that the Bretonnians were the ones attacking the village.

None the less, the two men just stared at each other's, no-one breaking eye contact. Still, there wasn't any hatred in their gazes. Just curiosity.

Satisfied with his observations, the man addressed the Bretonnians in a dignified manner. «I am captain of the Royal Select of the Kingdom of Re-Estize, Gazef Stronoff. We've come on the king's orders to subdue the imperial knights terrorizing this region. » His deep voice carried clearly throughout the square despite being quiet.

«Captain of the Royal Select, huh?, » murmured the Bretonnian.

If Louen squinted, it turned out they did all have the same crest on their chests. And it did resemble the kingdom's crest the headman had described earlier. But he was still a little too uninformed to know anything about them.

«You must be the village headman, » said Gazef, turning to the headman. «So then, if you would be so kind as to tell me who exactly that is next to you? »

The headman's mouth was half open, but Louen stopped him and gave a self-introduction. «That's not necessary. It's a pleasure to meet you, Captain. I am Louen Leoncoeur, the Lionhearted, the Lion of Bretonnia, the Golden Paladin, Duke of Couronne and King of Bretonnia. I mean no harm to your people. As a matter of fact, my knights rescued them from the filth you call "imperial knights." »

In response, Gazef jumped off his horse and landed with a clatter of armor. He solemnly bowed his head. «There are no words to express my thanks that your warriors have saved this village. »

A ripple went through the atmosphere.

It must have been a shock in this world, where social standing was so black and white, to see the most likely privileged man who held the position of captain of the Royal Select making a show of respect to Louen, whose status was unknown. Whilst Louen was a king, right now he was just a man in fancy armour on top of a deadly beast.

Then again, Louen assumed that with his wargear and mighty steed, his story was more than believable. Not everybody just strode around with such powerful items and rode on top of an apex predator.

Despite the fact that, for all he know, the Captain probably had problems fully believing Louen's story, Gazef had gotten off his horse and bowed to the Bretonnian. That spoke volumes about his character. Louen decided that the man must actually be who he said he was.

« It is the duty of a Bretonnian knight to protect the innocents and the weak. »

« Heh. Would be nice if more nobles thought the same thing. » Gazef scoffed.

« Do knights in your realm not answer the call of defenceless villagers? » Louen asked.

« Heh. Something like that. » Gazef spoke with no regret. He than gave the Bretonnian a puzzling look. « That being said….a "Bretonnian knight?" I'm afraid I've never heard of such order before. »

Louen cursed mentally at the question. He had doubts that Gazef would had believed him as much as the headman. Still, he have it a shot. « Captain Stronoff. I will not blame you for not believing me. But I'm afraid I'm not from this land. In fact, judging by what the headman has told me…I'm afraid I'm not from this world. »

Gazef looked at him shocked. « Not from this world? » he asked incredulous. He could tell from the Bretonnian knights that he was neither lying, nor he was insane. Still, he had some doubts.

« I see…if I may…could I ask you some questions? » Gazef asked the Bretonnians, the two talking about their world.

From the following conversation, it was obvious Gazef knew nothing of Bretonnia, Sigmar, Athel Loren or the Chaos Gods.

At the same time, other than the few information's the headman gave him, Louen knew nothing of the Re-Estize Kingdom, the Baharuth empire, the Slane Theocracy or El-Rantel.

Both men sounded far too honest and far too sane to be an unbelievable source. It was obvious the Bretonnians were not native of this world.

« Well, this isn't something you hear every day. Never in my life I've heard of a spell that can strand someone in another world. » Gazef commented.

«Neither have I. And Bretonnia has a certain history with the Raven. » Louen commented.

«"The Raven", huh? I assume this "raven" you speak of is a dreaded figure within your world, Sir Leoncoeur? »

Louen simply nodded. « Most definitely. The less you know, the better, for the Great Deceiver knows many plots and many tricks, hidden in knowledge. »

If someone else said something that dramatic to him, Gazef would had called him a madman. But these weren't the eyes of a lunatic. These weren't even the eyes of someone who spurred out nonsense to explain the unknown. He spoke of this "Great Deceiver" as a real entity, something he probably has seen before. Or at least, close enough to know it was real.

Gazef's eyes then flicked to the hippogriff. He had seen such creatures before, but never one this large.

«Right now there are two things I want to ask you. One: what kind of breed is that hippogriff? I've never seen one so large. »

«This is my mount, as well as my companion, Beaquis. He's a powerful hippogriff from the Grey mountains. »

He hummed his admiration and looked Louen up and down. «And now that you've been stranded in this world, what are your intentions? »

« Fear not, captain Stronoff. The knights of Bretonnia mean no harm to the Re-Estize kingdom. As a matter of fact, I could perhaps become an ally of your king. » Louen responded

«What would be the price of your services? » Gazeff asked.

«I ask but to merely being allowed to be stationed here, at Carne village. To protect these people from all manners of horrors plaguing this realm. That, and for no harm to come to my people. » Louen explained.

Gazef simply nodded. «I see. I suppose there is no harm in a few extra swords defending the kingdom. »

«Thank you. » Louen said.

«Well, then, shall we sit down somewhere and have a more detailed discussion? Also, if you don't mind, we'd like to rest here for the night... »

« I do believe that choice falls to the headman. » Louen said, as he turned towards the latter.

«Of course, captain. I'll be more than willing to report the attack, so please come to my house—» The headman was mid-reply when it happened. A lone cavalryman rode into the square. His rough breathing foreshadowed the seriousness of the news he'd brought.

He loudly announced an emergency. «Captain! Several figures spotted in the area! They're surrounding the village and approaching! »

Xxxxxxx

«Your attention, please. »

A quiet, level voice sounded so that all present could hear.

«Our prey has entered the cage. »

It was a man's voice. There was nothing particular about it. His face, too, was an average one that would get lost in a crowd—if it weren't for his utterly emotionless, almost artificial-seeming black eyes and a scar that ran down his cheek.

«Let us put our faith in the gods. »

All those present observed a moment of silence, a condensed prayer to their gods.

Even on a mission in a different country, they took time to pray—not out of confidence, but piety. These agents of the Slane Theocracy in the service of their gods had stronger faith than average citizens. That was how they could perform cold-blooded acts without thinking twice and feel no guilt.

After the prayer, all of their eyes were glazed over, like glass marbles.

«Begin. »

One word.

That was all it took for everyone to move in exquisite coordination to surround the village. One could sense it was the result of ceaseless training.

This was the unit that carried out mostly illegal activities. They existed even inside the Slane Theocracy itself only as rumors that followed them like shadows —one of the six scriptures that reported directly to the high priest, the Sunlit Scripture, whose most important duty was the extermination of nonhuman villages.

Although the Sunlit Scripture saw the most combat of any of the six special- ops units, they had very few members—not even one hundred, including reserves. Their small size implied how hard it was to be accepted.

First, they each had to be able to use tier-three (the highest level a normal caster could attain) faith magic. Superior mental and physical abilities, as well as a true faith, were also required.

In other words, they were the best of the best.

Watching his elite subordinates scatter, the man breathed out slowly. Deployment was done; it would be hard to monitor their movements now. However, he had no concerns regarding the construction of their cage. Captain of the Sunlit Scripture, Nigun Grid Lewin had the peace of mind of one who knew his mission's success was nearly at hand.

The Sunlit Scripture were not experts at covert or outdoor operations. They'd missed their chance four times. After each failure, they pursued Gazef and his men from the kingdom, careful to not be found. If they missed their chance again now, their days of chasing Gazef would continue.

«Should we...get help from another unit next time? I'd like to let someone else handle this. »

Someone was present to respond to Nigun's grumbling. «We really should. Our specialty is extermination! » He was a subordinate who had stayed behind, in part to guard Nigun. «So it's weird that we'd get assigned this mission. It's important, so why didn't they get the Flurry Scripture in on it, too? »

«Exactly. It's unclear why they assigned us alone, but it's been a good learning experience for us. Incorporating covert operations on enemy soil into our training isn't such a bad thing. I mean, it's possible that's why they had us do it. » Even as he said that, however, Nigun knew the probability of another mission like this coming their way was low.

Their mission was to remove Gazef Stronoff, a royal warrior so strong that there was no one comparable in any nearby countries. This was more of a job for the Black Scripture, the unit where all members had hero-level power. Normally it would have been given to them, but this time that wasn't possible.

The reason for that was top secret, so Nigun couldn't tell the lower-ranking man, but of course he knew what it was. The Black Scripture was too busy bracing for the resurrection of the Catastrophe Dragonlord—while also guarding the sacred treasure, Ruinous Beauty, and the Flurry Scripture's top priority was chasing down the traitor who had stolen one of the shrine princesses' sacred treasures.

Nigun unconsciously stroked the scar on his cheek. He thought of the one time he'd awkwardly fled from a fight, and the face of the woman who had given him the scar with her black magic sword came to mind...

Magic could have completely healed him, but he had left the scar there on purpose, so he wouldn't forget his defeat.

«Blue Rose... »

That woman was from the kingdom, like Gazef. But what Nigun really couldn't forgive her for was being a priest. Not only did she believe in a different god, but she tried to prevent Nigun and his men from attacking a subhuman village—and she thought she was right! She was a fool who couldn't see the big picture.

«Humans are weak, so we must protect ourselves in all manner of ways. She couldn't understand that, the fool. »

The subordinate man, perhaps sharp enough to catch the anger in his captain's glassy eyes, hastily interrupted. «Th-that kingdom, the whole bunch of them are fools. »

Nigun didn't answer, but he agreed.

Gazef was strong. That's why they had moved to weaken him by stripping him of his protection.

The kingdom was split into two factions, the king's side and the nobles, who were locked in a continuous power struggle. Gazef was an impossible-to-ignore member of the king's faction, so if the nobles thought they could thwart him, they were liable to act without thinking things through—even if their thought process was being manipulated by an agent from another country.

One of the reasons the nobles hated him was that he had worked his way up out of his commoner background by his prowess with the sword alone.

And the result of all that animosity?

The kingdom was about to lose their trump card.

To Nigun, it was utterly idiotic.

The Slane Theocracy also had factions—six of them, but they mostly worked together. One simple reason they could do that was the fact that they respected one another's gods. Another was that they knew they had to stick together in this dangerous world full of nonhuman races and monsters.

«...That's why we have to get them to walk the same path as us, the path based on the correct teachings. Humans are not meant to fight, but to walk together. »

And the sacrifice to this ideal would be Gazef.

«Do you think we can get him? »

Nigun took his subordinate's anxiety seriously.

Their prey this time was Gazef Stronoff, the strongest warrior in these parts and captain of the Royal Select. This was harder than wiping out a huge goblin village. So Nigun answered in a quiet voice to dispel his worries. «It shouldn't be a problem. You know those treasures the kingdom permits him to carry? He doesn't have them equipped this time. Without those, it should be a simple matter to kill him... I'd even say that if we miss this chance, it will, on the contrary, be impossible. »

Captain Gazef Stronoff's name was known far and wide for his skills, but there was another reason, as well—the kingdom's five treasures. Currently only four were known, but Gazef was allowed to equip them all: the Gauntlets of Vitality that made it so the wearer never got fatigued; the Amulet of Immortality that constantly healed the wearer; Guardian Armor that was said to be able to save the wearer from a fatal critical hit, made from the hardest metal in existence, adamantite; and Razor Edge, a magic sword that was enchanted in the pursuit of sharpness and cut armor like butter.

Even Nigun couldn't win against Gazef Stronoff if his attack and defense were boosted to extraordinary levels via that lineup of gear. Surely there was no human who could. But if he wasn't equipped with the treasures, they had a decent enough chance.

«Plus, we have an ace up our sleeve. There's no way we'll lose this fight. » Nigun patted his breast pocket.

In this world there were three types of nonstandard magic items. Relics of the Eight Kings of Avarice who conquered the continent in the blink of an eye more than five hundred years ago were one type. Before the Eight Kings of Avarice ruled, the dragons did. The dragons' hidden treasures, believed to have been created by the most powerful dragonlords' magic, were the second type. Finally, six centuries earlier, the six gods that made up the foundation of the Slane Theocracy descended. The supreme treasures they left behind were the third and final type.

And in Nigun's breast pocket was a supreme treasure—even the Slane Theocracy only had a few of them. It meant guaranteed victory.

He glanced at the steel band wrapped around his wrist. The numbers there indicated the passing of time.

« And what about those knights? You think they could cause problems in our operation? » the subordinate asked.

Nigun hummed at the sight. sure, with that many knights, the operation could be complicated. But in truth, he was confident in his abilities.

« They do not have ranged weapons and only two ride on flying steeds. We should manage. » was his response.

He then took a deep breath. «Okay, let's begin the operation. »

Nigun and his subordinate cast their magic—their elite angel-summoning magic.

Xxxxxxx

«I see. Yes, indeed... » Gazef confirmed the reported figures from the shadow of a house. He could see three. They were slowly walking toward the village, maintaining a fixed distance among one another. They were unarmed and weren't wearing heavy armor, but that didn't mean they would go down easily. Many casters eschewed heavy armor, preferring lighter materials. In other words, they were probably casters.

What made that completely clear were the glowing, winged figures lined up next to them—angels.

Angels were monsters summoned from another world that many people— especially people from the Slane Theocracy—believed served the gods. It was unclear whether that was true or false, and the priests of the kingdom asserted that they were simply a type of summoned monster.

That religious conflict was one reason the countries disliked each other, but Gazef didn't care who the monsters served. To Gazef, all that mattered was how strong they were.

As far as he knew, compared to other monsters summoned with the same level of magic, angels and demons (which were said to be about equal themselves) were a tad stronger. In addition to having many special abilities, they could use some magic, so Gazef categorized them among the more troublesome enemies. Even so, although it depended on the type of angel, they weren't unbeatable.

These ones wore gleaming breastplates and carried long swords of crimson flame. He'd never seen this type before, so he couldn't guess how strong they were.

Louen had come with him to take a look and asked, « By the Lady, who are these magicians? This village doesn't really seem that valuable... »

«Slane Theocracy casters. Obviously, they aren't after you, so there is only one reason behind their attack. »

Their eyes met.

Louen soon realized what Gazef was talking about. And in hindsight, it made sense. Why would the Baharuth empire attack a defenceless village with nothing valuable in it?

«I assume your position is quite valuable. » Louen commented.

« One could say that, but this is...a rather large problem. If they have this many casters summoning angels, it must be one of the rumored six scriptures, their special-ops units. Numbers, strength—they have the advantage. » Gazef shrugged his shoulders, all but openly grumbling about what a pain it was. His attitude was relaxed, but inside he was quite anxious. And angry.

«They did a great job using the nobles to take away my gear. If that snake had been sniffing around the court, things would probably have gone even worse, so I suppose we should count ourselves lucky that this was all that happened. Still, I never thought the Slane Theocracy would be after me... »

He snorted.

But they were really outnumbered. They weren't ready. They had no countermeasures to use. They were fresh out of everything. But there was one possibility...

The Bretonnians had never seen Angels before. There was nothing alike in Mallus. Harpies, perhaps? But these creatures weren't monstruous abominations plaguing the land. These creatures were magnificent, emitting a pure light.

In a way, they were as radiant as the image of the Lady. But in the hands of these men, who were more than willing to let innocent civilians being slaughtered to catch the attention of one man, they seemed corrupted. In their minds, they seemed more akin to the servants of the Dark Prince.

Gazef looked the pondering Bretonnians and said, with a glimmer of hope, «Sir Leoncoeur, if it's all right with you, we'd like to hire you. »

Louen simply turned towards the Captain.

«I can promise you any amount in compensation. »

«No need. We made an oath that we shall protect this village, and by the Lady, we shall keep our word to it. » was Louen answer.

Gazeff sighed in relief. « Than you so much, Sir Leoncoeur. It'll be a honour to die side by side with a true knight. »

Louen simply smirked. « We shall not die. It is this accused "six scriptures" that shall perish. » He then turned towards some of the foot soldiers.

« Arblastiers! Brigands! Bowmen! Follow the commands of Bertrand and his bowmen, take to the ruins and hail fire at the Angels! » he commanded.

« At once, your highness! » Bertrand commanded, as he motioned the ranged units. Louen then turned to the rest of the infantry.

« Battle Pilgrims! Men-at-Arms! Rascals! Villains! Follow the Hermit Knight command! Get the villagers to safety and then man the Trebuchets! » he commanded once more.

« Aye, my lord! » the Hermit King responded, as he motioned the infantry.

Louen then turned to the knights. « Come, knights of Bretonnia! Push those foul worshippers of Slaanesh back to their decadent holes! For the Lady! » the king roared out, as he was joined by the other knights, as they charged forward.

Gazef could not but admire their bravery. « Well, lads!? Are we just gonna leave these Bretonnians to die, doing nothing to aid them!? »

« NO! » the soldiers roared out, as they prepared for battle. « Then come, soldiers of Re-Estize! Show those brave knights the valour of the Royal Select! »

With that, the Re-Estizian soldiers joined their fray, ready to defend the village, or dying trying.

Xxxxxxx

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Please review so I can learn your opinion. I'm willing to accept suggestions, so stay tuned.

See you on the next chapter!